The present invention relates to a material handling machine and more particularly to a heavy duty, mobile drilling machine or the like adapted to facilitate operation in a variety of conditions.
Many material handling implements of the type contemplated by the present invention have been disclosed in the prior art for use in a wide variety of applications. In order to adapt the implements for use in a variety of conditions and on different types of terrain, they are commonly mounted on vehicles and very often upon track laying vehicles of a type particularly suited for maneuvering in relatively inaccessible sites such as are commonly encountered in construction.
In order to better adapt such vehicles for maneuvering or positioning their implements in a wide variety of operating positions, the implements are commonly mounted on turntables permitting the implement to be positioned at any point along a 180.degree. arc or even with a full 360.degree. of travel about the entire circumference of the vehicle.
In addition to the variety of positions permitted by such turntables and the like, the implement may also be movably mounted upon the vehicle by means of a boom or the like with hydraulic jacks or other types of motor means being employed for adjusting the position or angular alignment of the implement.
Accordingly, it is to be understood that a mobile drilling machine or material handling implement of the type contemplated by the present invention includes many individual components common to material handling machinery in the prior art. However, it is also to be understood that with the continued use of such machinery in construction or other types of applications, further improvement in the design of the machinery is continually being sought in order to make the machinery more competitive or efficient or versatile for example.
As examples of versatility and efficiency of the type sought in connection with material handling machinery such as that contemplated by the present invention, it is noted that a vehicular mounted implement may be positioned in a construction site or the like and adapted for movement of the implement upon the vehicle to reach a number of locations without repositioning the vehicle each time. As noted above, the present invention particularly contemplates a material handling implement in the form of a mobile drilling rig adapted for drilling foundation holes or the like in construction sites and other applications. It will be immediately apparent that the efficiency and versatility of such a mobile drilling machine is greatly enhanced if the drill can be properly positioned and angularly aligned for drilling a number of such holes with the vehicle in a single position. The efficiency and versatility of the machine is even further enhanced by such maneuverability where it is necessary for the vehicle to be located in relatively cramped quarters making movement of the vehicle difficult between the drilling of the different foundation holes or the like.
It will be further apparent that, in connection with mobile drilling machines and other material handling implements having similar characteristics, operation of the implement is enhanced if additional downward force can be applied during operation. The selective application of such force necessarily facilitates and makes more efficient certain operations such as the drilling of holes and other similar material handling applications.
Accordingly, there has been found to remain a need for improvements in material handling machinery of the type contemplated by the invention for overcoming one or more problems of the type referred to above and for making such machinery even more efficient, versatile and competitive in order to enhance its value in various applications.